Thursday 27 December 2018

Its nearly 2019!

With this year coming to an end,  I have started planning for next years classes.  I mentor a group of local quilters (21 of them) for 28 weeks in the year.  They are constantly looking for new challenges.  So my creativeness has been very limited due to time but I am very happy passing on my knowledge to others.  As a big thank you to all the women who have mentored me over the years, I believe I have the responsiblity to pass on what I know to the next generation of sewers.

Check this out!  Found in my garden last week while I was weeding.  It is a section of garden that hasn't required my attention for a very long time (years).  This was my husband's tee-shirt.  Cotton Polyester mix fabric.  Most of the cotton has rotted leaving only the polyester fibre and the label.  He obviously didn't miss it and it must have fallen out of our bedroom window!

This is my first attempt at wet felting (below).  I usually use my embellishing machine.  This was harder on the hands but so much fun.  I was under the strict guidance of  my friend Sandra who wouldn't let me stop working the fabric until she was happy it was well felted.  We used Ashford corridale and Merino/silk slivers.  Such great colours (photo doesn't do it justice).
I turned my piece into a knitting needle roll for a friend.


Jo was so delighted that she sent me this picture with her needles loaded. Plus 
her latest knitted item in 4ply Rowan yarn using pattern from the Patons Ombre baby book.
Spool Caps.  Are you using the correct spool cap for your spool on your machine?  I have been writing trouble shooting articles as part of one of my classes.  Its amazing how such a simple thing can cause so much trouble.

In the picture above I am basting a cot quilt using fabric rolls.  The backing is on the roll to the far left, next is the batting followed by the quilt top.  The single roll on the right is part of the quilt that has been basted.  Some quilters use swimming pool noodles.  I thing the fabric rolls are to light as it was hard to keep the rolls still  I may look into something slightly heaver like PVC pipping.

During the later part of this year, I ran several Trapunto classes using both traditional and modern methods.


This is Alison's sample.  I really liked how she imiated the pattern in her fabric with her quiting.

This is my own method of Trapunto which does not involve cutting away or stuffing.